Brooklyn Botanic Garden Releases Newest All-Region Guide: Community Gardening

Brooklyn, NY—June 18, 2008—Brooklyn Botanic Garden (BBG) announces the release of its newest All-Region Guide, Community Gardening, a comprehensive guide to growing and sustaining community garden programs. Community Gardening is a practical tool written from a broad perspective that mirrors the kaleidoscope of exciting community projects taking place throughout North America. It documents a contemporary social movement while providing practical tips based on the experience of proven programs that supply healthy food, bring neighbors together, and enrich communities.

Today, new concerns about food safety and sustainable practices, greater isolation from neighbors, and the loss of gardening space in growing cities have made the age-old practice of Community Gardening more relevant than ever. Community Gardening offers practical, hands-on advice about all kinds of community horticulture, including urban food production, aesthetic gardens, ethnic and refugee gardens, school and youth gardens, horticultural therapy, and curbside, rooftop, and condo gardens.

Helping people improve their daily lives through the cultivation and enjoyment of plants is a core mission of Brooklyn Botanic Garden and its GreenBridge community environmental horticulture program, which since 1993 has provided practical support for community gardeners throughout Brooklyn and beyond. GreenBridge is designed to share the knowledge and resources of BBG with the neighborhoods of the borough by working with block associations, community gardens, community centers, and other groups to promote conservation and community through gardening activities.

GreenBridge initiatives like the annual Greenest Block in Brooklyn Contest, the Brooklyn Compost Project, and the Making Brooklyn Bloom symposium present city residents with valuable resources and expertise while providing a model for community horticulture programs across the country. Through these programs and beyond, GreenBridge is a potent force in the sustenance of existing community gardens and the growth of new community garden programs—and makes BBG uniquely qualified to publish this groundbreaking handbook on making community gardens as robust as they can be.

Co-edited by Ellen Kirby, former director of GreenBridge, Community Gardening is a must-read not only for garden enthusiasts at all levels but for anyone interested in building community through horticulture. Individuals interested in "green" lifestyle choices, sustainable living, and growing food—as well as parks departments, nonprofit organizations, social service agencies, and community associations—will find Community Gardening to be an invaluable resource.

"Greening, sustainable living, and learning about food are increasingly of major concern in North America, and community gardens directly address these issues, and more," explained Kirby. "One of the best parts about Community Gardening is that anyone can become involved, regardless of expertise or experience—all that is necessary is a spark of curiosity and the desire to get to know one's neighbors. For Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Community Gardening has always been a top priority—and we are proud to continue the work of BBG and GreenBridge with the publication of this pioneering All-Region Guide."

Co-editor Elizabeth Peters said, "There's no single model for a successful community garden. So in this guide we include over 70 vibrant programs as examples, and drew expert authors from around the country. Community Gardening will show readers the potential of gardening for environmental education, recreation, neighborhood improvement, and enrichment of the soul—as well as the soil."

What's inside:

Compact, information-packed, hands-on guide suitable for members of new or mature gardens and anyone else interested in building community through horticulture Strategies for success, including practical tips for soil health, water conservation, reclaiming resources, and plant selection Case studies profiling large and small programs from communities throughout the country Superb color photos with an extensive resource section for all community gardeners

Whether readers are already members of a community garden, want to get involved in one, or are simply curious, Community Gardening offers a compelling look at how communities can cultivate and cooperate—while creating dynamic gardens and growing great food! Like all BBG handbooks, Community Gardening champions organic and sustainable practices.

Community Gardening editors:

Ellen Kirby is the former director of GreenBridge, the community environmental horticulture program of BBG. She is a member of the American Horticultural Therapy Association and a member and former president of the American Community Gardening Association. She has a masters degree in theological education and a certificate in horticulture from BBG. For more than 20 years Kirby served as the coordinator of a community garden in Brooklyn; since her retirement from BBG in 2007 she has lived in Brooklyn and Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

Elizabeth Peters is the director of Publications at Brooklyn Botanic Garden. She is the former editor of The Independent Film and Video Monthly and has written tool kits on grassroots organizing and community building. From 1990 to 1992 Peters coordinated Tuscarora Organic Growers, a collective of small central Pennsylvania family farms that sells fresh, organic produce in Washington, DC.

The New York Times Book Review called BBG's handbook series a "brilliant collection of little gardening handbooks.... Each one takes a small bite of subject matter and chews it thoroughly.Ö The mix of common sense, practical advice and, on occasion, pointed debunking...makes these slender volumes do the work of books twice their size and three times their price. And what the handbooks lack in acreage they make up for in authority."

Ordering Information

Community Gardening (ISBN 13: 978-1-889538-38-9) is available at a discount direct from Brooklyn Botanic Garden's online store at shop.bbg.org, or by calling 718-623-7286. It is also available in bookstores and at garden centers for $9.95 in the U.S./$10.95 in Canada. For wholesale ordering information, call Sterling Publishing Co. at 800-367-9692 or visit its website at www.sterlingpub.com. To receive a free brochure of current and past handbook titles, call 718-623-7241.

Brooklyn Botanic Garden handbooks have been published continuously since 1945. They are the only series of popular gardening books published by a botanic garden in North America. Written by top gardening experts and packed with spectacular color photos, All-Region Guides offer 120 pages full of ideas on how to make your garden beautiful, bountiful, and ecologically sensible.